Counter-Tracking in a Blind Spot and a Cold Smile Beneath the ANBU Mask

BOOM!

A violent red light instantly swallowed the entire thicket. A blinding fireball, carrying soil, wood splinters, and scorched leaves, swept outward as a searing shockwave.

Namikaze Minato's gaze darkened, yet he remained perfectly composed. With a light tap of his toes against a thick tree trunk, his golden figure glided backward for over ten meters like a swallow flying against the wind, landing steadily on a moss-covered branch.

The scorching heatwave, thick with the acrid smell of gunpowder, rushed toward him, whipping his golden bangs into a frenzy.

Minato did not look at the crater scorched into the earth; his azure eyes swept rapidly across the surrounding canopy and the forest floor. His brain reconstructed the scene in under half a second.

No blood, no severed limbs. The wooden log used as a substitute, plastered with an Explosive Tag, had been cut with surgical precision. The mud smeared on its surface had perfectly masked the scent of the wood, and the ignition timing of the Explosive Tag had been calibrated precisely to the moment he pushed aside the leaves.

This wasn't a panicked flight; it was a textbook counter-reconnaissance trap.

"Using the blast wave of an Explosive Tag to disperse the lingering scent of chakra in the air, then using the deafening roar of the explosion to mask the sound of footsteps," Minato muttered to himself, his brows knitting together.

For a low-level ANBU cannon fodder to notice his shadow clone's pursuit while moving at high speed, and to set up such a complex trap within a fleeting blind spot—this level of composure and tactical literacy was certainly not something an ordinary Genin possessed.

What exactly was that guy codenamed "Owl" hiding?

Minato drew a specialized Flying Thunder God Kunai from his pouch and snapped his wrist forward with force.

Whoosh!

The kunai turned into a bolt of black lightning, shooting directly toward the base of the cliff shrouded in thick fog ahead. He intended to use the Flying Thunder God's space-time technique to forcibly probe for chakra signatures at the bottom of the cliff.

Just as the kunai pierced the fog and was about to plunge into the turbulent river below.

At the base of the cliff, clinging to the rough rock face less than three meters above the water, Baishi hung like a lifeless gecko.

The icy river water crashed violently against the hidden reefs, sending up a spray of mist, the roar of the current deafening. Damp, cold wind surged up the river valley, pressing his black ANBU cloak tightly against his body.

There was not a ripple of emotion in the eyes behind Baishi's mask.

He had converted his max-level Lightning Release chakra into an incredibly fine, invisible membrane that clung to his skin. This Lightning Release film emitted no aggression; instead, it locked his body heat, heartbeat, and even his faint chakra fluctuations entirely within his body.

The kunai, engraved with the Flying Thunder God formula, whistled past, falling vertically less than ten centimeters from the tip of Baishi's nose.

The spatial chakra clinging to the kunai caused a subtle, stinging sensation on the skin beneath Baishi's mask.

He did not dodge. He didn't even blink.

He knew clearly that if he made any evasive movement, causing the slightest change in the surrounding airflow, that golden-haired genius above would instantly teleport to his location by following the trajectory of the air currents.

Plop.

The kunai fell into the turbulent river and was instantly swept away by the violent undercurrents, not even creating a splash.

Above the cliff, Minato closed his eyes, carefully sensing the feedback from the Flying Thunder God formula.

Aside from the chaotic water and messy natural energy, he found nothing.

A shadow clone only possessed one-tenth of the original's chakra; between the high-speed pursuit and the current sensory search, his chakra was already bottoming out.

Minato opened his eyes, a rare flash of frustration crossing his azure gaze. He took one last look at the bottomless fog of the cliff and formed a cross-seal with his hands.

Poof.

A cloud of white smoke exploded, and the golden figure dissipated completely into the air.

Below the cliff.

Baishi remained pressed against the rock wall for a full three minutes. Only after confirming there were no further traces of chakra probing from above did he slowly release his grip on the rock crevices.

With a burst of strength from his legs, Baishi performed a light, half-turn flip in the air, landing steadily on a slippery reef by the shore.

He reached up, pushed his mask onto his forehead, and revealed a pale, expressionless face.

As the cold river wind brushed his short hair, the corners of Baishi's mouth curled upward with agonizing slowness, forming a sneer filled with mockery and coldness.

"The 'Yellow Flash' who shook the ninja world is nothing more than this."

No flashy Bloodline Limit, no world-destroying S-rank ultimate move. He had used nothing but a basic Substitution Jutsu, a low-quality Explosive Tag bought on the black market, and an extreme exploitation of terrain and psychological blind spots to lead the future Fourth Hokage's shadow clone in circles.

This was the absolute suppression brought about by an intelligence gap.

Minato was too reliant on his intuition and the Flying Thunder God. When a hunter becomes accustomed to looking down on prey from a god's-eye view, the thing they most easily overlook is often the most inconspicuous shadow beneath their own feet.

Baishi wiped away his cold smile and pulled the ANBU mask back over his face. The featureless, ghastly white mask once again disguised him as that timid, low-level cannon fodder.

He walked to the river, grabbed a handful of wet mud, and smeared it crudely over the hem of his cloak and his forehead protector. Then, he used a kunai to slice open the sleeve of his left arm, squeezing out a bit of blood to smear along the edge.

Having finished his disguise, Baishi retracted his Lightning Release chakra. His figure flickered, turning into a black shadow as he climbed rapidly up the other side of the cliff, chasing in the direction the Venom Fang squad had taken.

Land of Fire border, deep within the Redwood Forest.

Venom Fang stood on a thick tree trunk, his eyes cold behind his mask as he stared at the dense forest behind them. Wildcat and Wild Boar stood on either side, maintaining a tactical defensive formation.

"That piece of trash has been gone so long, he hasn't died in a trap, has he?" Wild Boar grunted.

"Better if he's dead," Venom Fang snorted, though his hand tightened on his ninja blade. "But if he dared to desert, I'll twist his head off myself."

Just then, a hurried rustling sound came from the thicket ahead.

The three ANBU instantly gripped their weapons, their killing intent locking onto the source of the noise.

Branches were shoved aside roughly, and Baishi stumbled out of the woods, panting heavily. His cloak was covered in mud, his left sleeve was torn wide open with blood faintly visible, and he looked utterly disheveled.

"Captain..." Baishi knelt on one knee on the tree trunk in front of Venom Fang, his voice trembling with palpable panic. "While I was clearing traps, I triggered a chain of Explosive Tags and was nearly blown off the cliff. That is what delayed me. Please, Captain, punish me!"

Venom Fang looked down at Baishi from his superior position. His gaze, like a venomous snake, swept inch by inch over the mud on Baishi's body, his torn hem, and the ragged, heavy breathing he was deliberately putting on display.

No flaws.

This was nothing more than a piece of trash with weak chakra, a failure who would get himself covered in wounds just from clearing traps.

"Trash is just trash." The suspicion in the depths of Venom Fang's eyes vanished completely, replaced by an even heavier disdain. "If you weren't still of some use, I would slaughter you right now. Get to the front and keep leading the way!"

"Yes!" Baishi lowered his head timidly, turned with extreme obedience, and walked back to the very front of the team.

The moment his back was turned to Venom Fang, the eyes behind Baishi's mask were instantly filled with cold, murderous intent.

Old bastard, let you be arrogant for a little longer.

The four-man squad picked up speed again, weaving through the dense primeval forest. As they pushed deeper into the border, the surrounding trees grew taller and taller, their interlocking canopies completely blocking out the sun, leaving the forest filled with the stench of rotting leaves and damp mud.

Three hours later, the terrain dropped sharply.

A long, narrow canyon appeared ahead. On both sides stood steep, hundred-meter-high rock walls, barren of any vegetation, with only dark red rock strata exposed. The bottom of the canyon never saw sunlight, and it was filled with a grey, hazy miasma.

This was the only path to the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Grass, and it was the perfect terrain for an ambush.

Venom Fang suddenly stopped and made a signal to halt.

The squad instantly concealed themselves behind a giant boulder at the entrance of the canyon.

"According to intelligence, the Iwagakure spy squad is lurking just ahead." Venom Fang lowered his voice, pointed toward a pile of rubble deep in the canyon, and spoke with an unquestionable command. "Owl, you cut in from the left and scout the enemy numbers at coordinate C-4. Remember, do not expose yourself. Once you spot the target, signal immediately."

Baishi crouched behind the giant boulder, his gaze following the direction Venom Fang pointed.

Coordinate C-4.

The terrain there was extremely low, with no cover whatsoever, fully exposed to the crossfire of the rock walls on both sides of the canyon. More fatally, through the keen perception of his max-level Lightning Release, Baishi clearly captured that the real Iwagakure chakra signatures were not at C-4 at all, but behind the B-2 rock wall on the high ground to the right!

Venom Fang was lying.

He had deliberately given a completely wrong coordinate to send Baishi straight into the center of the Iwagakure's line of sight, using him as a living target.

At this moment, Wildcat, who had remained silent the entire time, retreated half a step very subtly, his figure beginning to blend into the shadows outside the canyon. He was preparing to break away from the team to carry out the true mission: Danzo's assassination of Minato.

The dagger was revealed as the map was unrolled.

The hunter had already spread his net, ready to completely wipe out the cannon fodder that stood in his way.

Baishi lowered his head and replied with extreme crispness: "Understood."

He did not raise any questions, instead drawing the short blade at his waist and stepping into the grey, hazy miasma all alone, like a bait that had noticed nothing.

His boots crunched against the gravel at the bottom of the canyon, making a faint, rhythmic friction.

Ten meters.

Twenty meters.

Thirty meters.

As Baishi walked into the middle of the empty, exposed clearing in the center of the canyon, three black shadows dropped abruptly from the towering rock walls on either side.

The heavy aura of Earth Release chakra instantly locked off all of Baishi's escape routes.

"A little rat from the Konoha ANBU, you've got some nerve."

A hoarse, mocking voice echoed above the canyon. Three elite ninjas wearing Iwagakure headbands surrounded Baishi in a triangular formation. The leading Iwagakure jonin already had his hands on his ninja tool pouch, his thick arm muscles bulging high with the effort of gathering power.

A hundred meters behind Baishi, behind the giant boulder, Venom Fang watched the scene with cold eyes. A cruel smile curled his lips as his right hand gripped the hilt of his ninja sword, ready to move in and harvest the weakened Iwagakure once Baishi was killed.

In the center of the canyon, Baishi stopped.

He did not panic, nor did he turn to beg Venom Fang for help.

He only raised his head extremely slowly, his pale mask appearing exceptionally cold and grim in the gloomy miasma. His right hand, hidden beneath his wide sleeve, skillfully pinched the edge of an Explosive Tag.